No NFL team is exempt from terrible seasons. When it comes to the absolute worst season in Cincinnati Bengals history, there are two that immediately have to be taken into consideration. Those seasons are 2002 and 2019 where the Bengals went 2-14, which is the worst record in franchise history.
Neither team was expected to be competitive entering the year, as both the 2001 and 2018 Bengals went 6-10. The big difference between the two was that the 2019 Bengals had first-year head coach Zac Taylor leading the charge while Dick LeBeau was in his second full year (and third overall) as head coach and was fired at the end of the year.